Episode I: A New Dawn
by The Random Otaku
Summary: "The hell is going on here?" he questioned out loud and eyed the woods around himself, seeing a small, dark figure to the left on a small hill. "You've gotta be shittin' me," he whispered to himself. He narrowed his eyes and stared at it until he realized it was another person. "Help…!" he called out to what he assumed was a human. "Go get someone! There's been a shooting!"
1. Out Of the Frying Pan and Into the Fryer

Everything was among what one would label normal. It was a humid day with lots of sun and a bright blue sky with thin, wispy clouds here and there. The highways were just as busy as ever, and among the rainbow array of cars and trucks was a police car. Its lights and noises were off as it cruised down the road with a black haired man sitting in the front driving who also wore black sunglasses and his eyes were the same color as his tresses. There was another male in the car as well; of course, he was sitting in the back behind the protective glass with handcuffs digging into and around his wrists.

The man grumbled to himself and moved his arms in an attempt to find a way to relieve the pain his restraints were making. He didn't notice the officer looking in the rearview mirror and lightly scratch his stubbly cheek as he observed the other in the back. He just wished he could have the damn things off his wrists…

"Well," the officer said, his tenor voice flowing smoothly through the air. "I deem that you didn't do shit."

He tilted his head up, jerking his head to the left to move some of his red hair from his face before looking into the mirror with his bright green eyes to see the other male's black ones. "Why do you say that?" he asked and brought his hands up to be able to scratch under his right eye where one of his teardrop shaped tattoos were.

"I've driven plenty of men down to this prison," the driver explained. "Reapers only know how many… Usually, by this time I get the "I didn't do it," rant."

"…and what do you say?"

The police officer rolled his eyes. "I tell 'em, 'Yeah, I know ya didn't.'"

With some scratchiness, the radio in the car said, "We've got what appears to be a 10-91E near Dusk Exit of 285, y'know. All cars asked to keep an eye out for a 91V in the area, y'know."

"I followed your case a little bit, you bein' a Twilight boy 'n all," the black haired man suddenly said after a short silence.

The redhead cocked his head to the right. "You're from Twilight Town, then?" he asked.

He nodded. "Yep…!" he exclaimed. "I came up to Traverse Town to be a city cop. Always wanted to work a murder case…" The driver looked away from the road to the mirror to eye the man in the back of his car. "Kinda like this mayor crap you're tangled up in… With all due respect, of course… What a shame that is…"

Without really meaning to, the criminal watched another police rig zoom by until it disappeared into the distance as it headed back to Twilight Town. He turned his head to look back at the cop that had decided to continue talking.

Shit, the redhead thought. This guy likes to talk a lot…

"Hell, my family and other relatives were regulars at your parents' drugstore right in downtown…" The man trailed off then cleared his throat. "Still there…?"

Nodding, the green eyed man said, "Sure is…"

"Good…"

The radio scratched again. "Be warned of healing workforces on route to Neverland, y'know. Several 10's and 20's comin' in, y'know."

"Gotta nephew that goes to UTT," the black haired man said abruptly. "You teach there long?"

Fuck, why're you trying to make conversation, the other wondered.

"Goin' on my sixth year…"

"You meet your ex, Marluxia, there?"

The other's calm expression fell and he frowned. He then looked down before turning his head to see the window, all while being silent. Why was he stuck with a police officer that was so fucking nosey? Why couldn't the man just keep his mouth shut and just allow a silent air between them.

For all I care, that pink haired manwhore can go get fucking gangbanged, the redhead thought bitterly.

"Wanna know how I see it?" the cop asked.

He was quiet as he saw one federal truck and four cop cars fly by on the road. He frowned slightly at the sight, but somewhat just let it slide. "…Not really," he replied and turned his head to face forward with the frown still on his face.

"You may have the right to remain silent in my car, but I don't have to." Looking in the mirror, the officer opened his mouth to speak his words but close it and gave a small frown himself. He shook his head gently and looked away from the rearview mirror. "Er…regardless…could be that you just married the wrong man."

Fuck you, the redhead thought and opened his own mouth as if he were about to speak as well.

Shaking his head, the man with bright green eyes closed his mouth and let out a throaty sigh. He wasn't going to get anywhere with speaking his mind to the other man. If he were, he'd probably get into even deeper shit than he already was. He didn't know how, but it would somehow happen.

"Rebellion in development, y'know," the radio interrupted again. "All officers present for 217's… Rolling calls and notices to all localities, y'know."

The redhead looked up when he could hear the sounds of a helicopter above them and moved his head as he listened to look out the back window of the patrol car. He watched it disappear into Twilight Town as well while two more SWAT cars and four more cop cars drove by. What was going on that needed so much law enforcers?

As he looked back, the officer started up again with another story. "I was drivin' this guy one time, and he was the _worse_," he heard him complain. "He wouldn't shut up about how he hadn't done anything. He was an older dude… Big, soft eyes behind a pair of small glasses, and he was just snivelin' back there. Kept tellin' me it wasn't him while he was sobbin' and snottin' all over right about where you are…"

"All officers are available for an entering 4-217…"

Glaring at the radio, the black haired man turned the machine off before fixing the rearview mirror and his sunglasses. "Anyway, before long he starts kickin' the back of the seat here just like a fussy baby on an airplane. I tell 'im he's gotta stop since its government property 'n all that shit and I'd have to be forced to Taser 'im otherwise. He stopped 'cause he used all his options, he starts crying out for his ma!" He shook his head and rolled his eyes. "'Mom, it's all one big misunderstanding! It wasn't me!'"

"Maybe he _was_ innocent…?" the other male questioned slowly.

"Innocent…?!" the driver said in a protesting manner. "They caught that motherfucker red-handed! Stabbin' and cuttin' up his wife as the boys came in, and he sits in _my_ car and screams that it wasn't him. Think he might've believed it himself…" He shook his head again. "Shows ya that people'll go up and go mad once they think they're life is ending… Oh, I got another good one for ya!"

Goddamn it, shut up, the handcuffed man shouted in his head. Suddenly, his eyes went wide when he saw a person in the middle of the road and about to get hit by them.

"This one's a little less depressing and funnier if I do say so…"

"Fucking drive…!"

There was a thwack from the police car hitting the being in the road and the cop lost control. The car swerved left then right before continuing in the direction and hitting the guard rail alongside the highway. The rail immediately gave way, and the rig went down a hill with both men bouncing around and going every which way in their seats all the way down as it rolled.

Since he was in the back and was being thrown around so much due to his lack of seatbelts, the man in the back was knocked out while the officer was conscious for the ride until it reached the bottom of the hill. The male moaned in from pain, ripping off his broken sunglasses before unbuckling his seatbelt. "Damn kid," he grumbled. "Should've warned me sooner…"

As he carefully made his way to lean on the driver side door, his lower back against the handle of it, he made sure to check on the man in the back. Afterwards, when he had noticed the car was on its side at an angle, the cop rubbed his neck before looking over the radio. "Shit," he growled. "I was really hoping that that had somehow survived the crash…"

A sudden snap of some twigs and rustling made the grown man freeze. "Uuhnn…"

"The fuck was that…?" he asked to no one in particular.

"Uuhnn…"

His actions were deliberate and the officer made an effort while he went through the broken window on the driver's side head first to _not_ cut himself in any way. "It's gotta be wildlife," he told himself quietly. "Like, a type of Noise, or…something…" The man then got to the point where he had drug himself out to where his hips lined up with frame of the machine before he saw a being trudge down the incline behind him in a sluggish manner.

Someone that can help, he thought.

"H-Hey…!" the cop stammered. "You there, can ya give a hand? Was kinda in an accident…" He watched the other being for a little bit while he finished pulling himself out of the rig. He was curious as to why they hadn't said anything. "Hello…?" he called and loaded his gun while he sat on his knees in the dirt. He cursed himself when he dropped one of the shells and it rolled as well as bounced to the side mirrors.

A gasping noise came from his right, the opposite from where he was looking, and he jumped. "Christ…!" he yelled as he backed up into the patrol car. "The fuck are ya doin'…?!"

He fumbled with his weapon and shot the grey skinned figure that was walking toward him in the chest. "Shit…!" the officer shouted. "I-I'm _so_ sor…" His black eyes widened at the creature when it only grunted and continued trudging towards him after it stumbled back a couple steps due to the force the bullet produced. "The hell…?"

There was a hissing/gargling growl before the man felt something grab one of his ankles and tugged on him. The sound of him hitting the ground hard and the air escaping his lungs filled the eerie aura around everything in the area. He coughed and wheezed as he attempted to yank his foot away from another grey being, but then turned it into kicking it in the face when he wasn't able to pull himself free. "Jesus," he grumbled when the smell of rotting flesh hit his senses, and covered his nose while he was losing his struggle. "Lemme go, god damn it…!"

While being dragged away from his car, forcing him to leave his shotgun behind, the officer clawed the ground in an attempt to free himself once more. He had decided he wasn't going to go down without a fight. "Aahn…!" he screamed when a mouth clamped down on his calf then a whine/pain filled groan came from his throat when he could feel that chunk of him be ripped away from his full being. "N-No…! Wh-What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Only being able to watch in horror, the cop cried out as he felt another set of jaws bite down on the meat on his side while a third got his arm. "No…!" he yelled as he continued to struggle. "Shit…this world is fucked…" The law enforcer continued to fight against and shout at the weird beings until he had lost so much blood he lost consciousness.

))((

"Nn…"

The groan seemed to resonate around him, along with the soft clinking sounds of chains. He tried to swallow, but his mouth was too dry, and he attempted to lick his also dry lips. He struggled to open his eyes since they wouldn't allow him too. His green eyes would only let him open them slightly, seeing blurry images before they closed on their own accord. That pattern repeated for what seemed like hours to him.

So thirsty, he thought.

Once he was able to open his eyes, the man slowly moved his head; his neck was completely sore from the position it had been in. He groaned again as he sat up straight and popped his neck. "Ah, fuck…!" he yelled then hissed when he attempted to move a bit. "My fuckin' leg…"

With a sigh, the handcuffed man looked to his left and out the window. "Is that the…?" He frowned some and he narrowed his eyes to try and get a better view as he leaned forward a little bit. "Shit, it _is_ the cop…" He straightened up in his seat again. "Officer…? You okay? I'm still cuffed back here!"

He watched the officer for a short moment before looking around at the other windows. The redhead bit his lip when he was done, and turned his attention back to the cop. Nothing seemed to add up in his mind. "Well, he wasn't shot out from the car," he stated quietly to himself before he noticed the other man's shotgun. "Why the hell did he need his gun…?"

Before long, the green eyed man scrunched his nose up. "God damn, what is that smell?" he asked out loud. "It smells like…rotten flesh… How long have I been out here?" He then shook his head. "I gotta get outta here, and get these damn things off too."

Moving as carefully as he could, the redhead turned to his right to the partially cracked window. "Guess this's my only way out." With that, he moved his uninjured leg and kicked the window. He did this three more times before the glass shattered then he climbed out.

"Gah, damn it…!"He shouted when he hit the ground with a thud, "Jesus…!"

Slowly getting up, the redhead clung to the patrol car as if it were his life when he got to his feet. He used the machine as support until he got to the side where the dead, he assumed, cop lay. "He's _gotta_ have the keys on 'im," he said quietly while letting go of the car and taking a step away from it.

As soon as he did though, something red appeared in the corner of his eye, and he looked in the direction of it. "The hell…?" Limping over, he noticed when he got close enough to it was a shotgun shell. "Was he trying to shoot something?" he asked out loud, making pain filled noises while he awkwardly bent over to pick it up.

He put the item in his pocket as he turned around. He then limped sluggishly over to the body. "Officer…?" the redhead questioned and raised an eyebrow at the deceased man who was on his back. "Eh, what got to ya…? A Shadow…?"

With a sigh and some light grunts, the green eyed man gracelessly bent down again before he began lightly patting the black haired man's pockets. "Er, don't mind me," he stated quietly. "I'm not tryin' to be friendly over here… Ah ha…!" He smiled and grabbed a small set of keys then fished them out of the cop's pocket. "Thank you, my good man."

Fumbling with the keys, the criminal seemed to growl when he dropped them. "Shit," he breathed and locked his green eyes on the silver item that landed on the other man's chest next to his name badge. "Hanekoma Sanae, huh…?" He shook his head as he snatched the keys from their resting place. "Poor bastard…"

Two clicks resonated through the air before the man tossed the keys to the ground when the handcuffs fell from his wrists. "Finally…!" he exclaimed in a relieved tone and rubbed his wrists. "They're off…"

A groaning/hissing noise started abruptly, and the redhead looked down at the officer with wide eyes. "Mr. H…?"

"Grraaah…!"

"Fuck…!" he shouted when the other unexpectedly attempted to get in his face.

He landed back on his behind and immediately started pushing his way back. "What the hell are you?!" he demanded before he hit his back on the patrol car. He looked around himself frantically after he had stared at the growling being crawling towards him for a long moment.

Damn it, he thought, I'm gonna die if I don't do something quick!

"The gun…!"

His hands flew to the shotgun on his left and aimed it at the presumably dead police officer as fast as he could pick it up. He was about to pull the trigger when something in his mind told him to open the firearm and check it for ammo. Check the ammo he did, and it was a good thing he had. "Fuck all things paradise like!" he snarled. "Damn thing doesn't have a shot in it!"

It was then he remembered about the shell he had on him.

Shoving his hand into his pocket, the redhead watched with wide green eyes the black haired man get closer and closer. This made him dig in his pocket with a higher sense of urgency. "Not gonna die like this," he told himself before he bumped his fingers against something hard in his pocket.

He quickly grabbed it and yanked his hand out. The green eyed man looked back down, then, with shaky hands, attempted to put the shot into the barrel. It wasn't long after that he fumbled and made the item fly. "Shit…!" he panicked as the red shotgun shell landed on the ground next to his injured leg.

As fast as he could, the man snatched the item from next to his leg. When he looked up, it was a sight he didn't want to see. The cop was only some feet away from him. "Damn it," he breathed and turned his attention back to the shotgun.

Once he finally got the weapon loaded, he took aim again. He targeted the other male's head, and it was dead center of his forehead. "Don't make me do this, Mr. H!" he warned before he told himself, "Screw it," and shot the other.

There were a few crows off in the distance that could be heard cawing and flapping their wings as they flew away; startled by the sound of gunshot. Then a light thud with some clinking was made when the redhead threw the gun on the ground. "His skin is rotten and smells like shit… What's going on…?"

Since he wasn't able to help it, he stared at the lifeless cop's blown off head. He completely ignored the pool of blood that came from the dead being which was leisurely inching towards him. "What was that all about?!" he said in a confused tone of voice. He couldn't believe that he done what he just did. "…H-Hey…! Officer, are you dead?!" He licked his suddenly dry lips. "Mr. Hanekoma, are you dead?!"

With a sigh, the redhead finally looked away from the still body. "The hell is going on here?" he questioned out loud and eyed the woods around himself, seeing a small, dark figure to the left on a small hill. "You've gotta be shittin' me," he then whispered to himself. He narrowed his eyes and stared at it until he realized it was another person. "Help…!" he called out to what he assumed was human. "Go get someone! There's been a shooting!"

He watched the shape turn before it walked away and felt completely relieved. The man stood up carefully and stretched his arms as well as the rest of his upper body. "Such a great week ya got goin'," he mumbled to himself. "A great _fuckin'_ week…"

"Aa-aah…"

The redhead froze at the choked, gasping noise. "You're kidding…" he trailed off, turning his body to the left.

Coming down the hill where the car rolled down, was another…thing that the officer was. Before long there was a second one that came out from behind a gigantic boulder, and they were both going after him with their arms stuck out. "Yeah, no," the man said and turned his body, beginning to limp away. "Not gonna ha… Shit…!"

Air escaped from the male's lungs when he landed on the ground, and he wondered how he had tripped until he saw the cop's lifeless body. He scrambled to his feet as fast as he could without hurting himself any more than he was. As he hobbled off again, his green eyes caught sight of another walking dead being coming after him, which made him pick up his pace. He then, after going further more up the small hill, saw another one of them sitting on the ground and leaning against the tree.

"Ooof…!" He fell again while he climbed up the hill when he turned his attention to see what was in front of him. "God damn it, no!" he exclaimed, rushing to be on his feet again as he crawled away. "This ain't gonna happen!" The male continued to push himself to get over the hump and felt relieved when he saw a fence.

He stumbled once more while he headed to the wooden fence, but he caught himself instead of falling. He could hear the things behind him as they were catching up to him, and they were on his heels. "Hup…!" he let out in an airy voice when he jumped up on the fence and clung to it like a monkey to a tree.

With all of the strength in his arms, the redhead pulled himself up on top of the fence along with allowing some grunts to escape. "Whoa…!" he said with a hint of surprise as his being continued moving forward. He then landed on the green grass of the other side of the fence and groaned. "Aaah…fuuuck…"


	2. Journeys Of a Caretaker

"_Thump_, _thump_…!"

The criminal jumped as he let out a startled yelp and scrambled to push himself back away from the fence. He could hear more of the thumping as the things continued to walk up to the barrier. Their noises kept getting louder as well no matter how much farther away he got. As a matter of fact, it seemed to be just the opposite.

"_Thunk_…!"

He growled and his hand instinctively flew to his head as a familiar sensation of stinging pain flooded in his skull where he hit it. Even with the unpleasant sense lingering in his nerves, he gritted his teeth and gripped onto a handful of his own bright red hair all while keeping as quiet as he possibly could. He could hear the things continue to pound on the wood, and listened to just that until the intensity of the sounds suddenly decreased while gunshot was happening in the distance. The man kept his ears pinned as he waited and bit his tongue.

"Fuck…!" the redhead exclaimed while he turned his upper body to see what was behind him after the thumps had stopped entirely. "God damn fucking porch…"

With a sigh, he rubbed the back of his head and stood up by using the grey colored porch for support. His green eyes traveled around the, what he noted was, backyard he had fallen into. It was a nice yard… Actually, it was a decent yard. Probably the best he had ever seen; or from what he could remember at least. "Hello…? Anybody…?" he hollered before letting out another sigh.

His eyes then locked onto a circular pool with its cover on for a bit, and he said before turning and walking off to a tree, "Maybe I'll go for a dip…"

Man, he thought as he stared at a small table with fake, play china on it as he walked to the tree which he discarded for the sight above him in the thick limbs. If that was a beer set instead of a tea set, I'd be a set guy… No pun intended either.

The redhead kept his head tilted up as he observed the structure above. "There's not a chance of me getting up to that playhouse with this leg," he mumbled as he eyed the dark colored wood tree house. He rested a hand with long fingers on the light colored wood pieces nailed into the tree that acted as a ladder. "Hello…? Is someone up there?" he called and paused in his yelling, muttering to himself about the figure they saw in the woods. "If you can hear me, please, say something… I'm not one of those…_things,_ if that what you're thinking!"

Don't mind me, he thought while pushing up on the rolled sleeves of his black button up shirt, I'm just a strange man bleedin' in your backyard…

After watching for any signs of life, the man shook his head as he turned away and set his eyes on the two-story, dark beige painted house with white trimming. "Wonder if anyone's in there," he whispered in a questioning tone before he slowly limped back to the home. He held on tight to the railing when he carefully climbed up the steps and across the porch until he ended up standing in front of a white framed sliding glass door. Before he walked to the door, he leaned forward and idly scratched his bare chest where he left his shirt undone. "Someone home…?" he asked loudly as he hit the glass with his fist, making sure to get attention of whoever might have been inside if any. "I need a little help…"

Backing away from the door a little bit, the man observed for a long moment through the window and frowned a little bit when there wasn't a sound. Well, minus the tire swing hanging from the tree making a rather loud squeak now and again. "Hello…?" He banged in the window again with his fist. "Is no one here?" he asked himself quietly and somewhat pressed himself into the glass. He was able to see that the door led to a dining room and a kitchen immediately, then a living room deeper within the abode with the television on and showing a blue screen. It illuminated the otherwise unlit house.

Maybe it's unlocked, the redhead told himself in his head before pulling on the handle of the door and having it slide open smoothly.

"Don't shoot, 'kay?" he called into the seemingly empty dwelling, slowly limping inside. "I'm comin' in…" He hissed suddenly after he had turned back around from closing the door behind him. "Aah, shit…" he growled and grabbed his dark wash jean covered leg. He held it for a moment before letting go and walking a little further into the household. "'M not a trespasser…or one of…_them_…" The redhead looked around and it made his green eyes widen a bit.

There were chairs that were off their legs and on their sides instead, the place looked like it had been ransacked with the living room appearing how it was, and… Was that puddle of blood in the entryway of the kitchen? What had happened in this house exactly?

"Whoever lives here might need more help than me…" he said quietly and looked over to his right at the bar. There wasn't anything particularly interesting on the surface. All that laid there was an open spiral notebook with chicken scratch writing and pencil on the paper and an open trigonometry book with a scientific calculator on top if it next to it.

He looked back and saw a small basket of fruit on the dining table he hadn't noticed before. As fast he could, he limped over to the table and reached for an apple. When he touched it, he immediately frowned and turned his back on the table as if it had just insulted him. "Damn it," he said under his breath, "it's fake…"

Cocking his head some to the left, the redhead's frowned deepened a little bit more at the pool of blood. "Jesus," he breathed and took a careful step forward. It didn't matter how cautious he was though… The man, only after taking two steps forward, slipped and fell on his right side; the side with the injured leg. He groaned as he got back to his feet then looked at his side. "_Really_?" he asked out loud, shaking his head and continued forward into the topsy-turvy kitchen, not spotting the bloody hand and footprints that lead deeper into the area.

The man immediately went to his right, heading to the silver sink that was there, and picked up a purple cup sitting next to it. He looked inside of it before gulping down the substance, which was water, that was inside of it and placing it back down onto the counter while letting out a sigh. He then opened up one of the drawers next to the basin only to find an empty box that used to hold aluminum foil before looking around the kitchen. "Place seems to have been raided," he said as he took note of the various open cabinets and drawers. "Whatever had been valuable's gone now…"

Of course, that didn't stop the redhead from opening up other random drawers and cabinets; which he did until the last drawer he opened held a big, black walkie-talkie, and he stared at it for a second. He wondered why a walkie-talkie was there to begin with, but let it slide and picked up the radio, putting it into his pocket before he noticed the black refrigerator in the room had a note on it held by a magnet of a Chocobo head with an overturned table in front of the appliance. "Castle Oblivion…" he trailed off, staring at the note a little longer. "That's a Hollow Bastion area code…but that's the type of info you leave a babysitter…right?"

Suddenly a loud, shrill beep filled the air, making the man wince a little. "The hell's that…?"

"_You have _three_ new messages_."

Hobbling along, he saw a fallen bookcase when he stopped next to a table along the wall. "Furniture all fucked up and blood's everywhere… Shit…"

"_BEEP_…"

The redhead looked over at the table and caught the offender making the horrible noise. He saw a bright red number three on the screen and the other buttons that made the mechanism work. "Maybe the answering machine will have something on it that'll tell me what the fuck's going on…"

He pressed the play button and he listened as the machine spoke. "Three new messages," it said with a monotone voice. "Message one, left at 6:09 p.m.…"

_"Neku, it's Cloud,"_ a deep, male voice said in an almost gentle manner. _"I'm still in Hollow Bastion… Sephiroth's plane is delayed__, so I have to stay longer than originally planned. Anyways, I don't think I'm gonna make it back tonight, so we'll probably stay at a hotel here. I swear I'll be back before your damn break, so don't get pissy and don't pick on mini me."_

"Message two, left at 11:04 p.m.…"

_"God damn, finally… I dunno if either one of you has been trying to reach us… Calls have been getting dropped left and right… No one's letting us go anywhere__ outta here and they're not telling either one of us shit about Traverse Town. Neku, leave now and take mini me with you. Rocket Town may be your guys' best bet, but I dunno… I gotta get back to the hotel and make sure Seph isn't __"making new friends" again. Lemme know you two are safe."_

"Message three, left at 7:01 a.m.…"

_"Neku…Mini m__e…if you can hear this, call the cops… Love you guys… Lo…"_

He slowly turned his gaze away from the off-white machine after the last message ended abruptly. The man couldn't help but feel his stomach attempt a flip and a twinge of sorrow. He only hoped Neku and Mini me, whoever Mini me was, had taken Cloud's instructions to heart and gone to Rocket Town. Somewhere safe…

The redhead ignored a Struggle Champion trophy that had fallen over on the table and instead let his fingers touch a black, smooth picture frame. He licked his lips as he picked up the small memento and held it in both of his hands, running a thumb over the cracked glass. In the image was a tall, silver haired man with a blonde man at his side as well as trying to get him to smile and a shorter blonde male receiving a noogie from an orange haired male.

While examining the photograph, along with the inappropriate thought about how the orange haired being in the picture should have taken off his headphones, the redhead began to wonder what if… What if he had woken up sooner? What would have happened if he came to this house, if he had found it, earlier?

He set down the frame, shaking his head. Too many questions were filling his head as well as feelings, oddly enough. He didn't want to continue assuming that something happened to Neku and Mini me. In his mind, the two of them had gotten out of Traverse Town and gone to Rocket Town and were alright.

An abrupt scratchiness broke the eerie silence which made the redhead look around with a curious gaze during it, and even after. There was one more short moment of loud static before there was some rustling. Then there was a voice that came through. "Cloud…?"

"Whoa, what…?" The man looked down while his hands immediately went to his ass as if he were searching himself. He rolled his bright green eyes when he realized it was the walkie-talkie that had been going off the whole time. "Dumbass," he called himself then grabbed the device before shuffling over to the sliding door and holding it up to his mouth, pressing a button on the side of it. "Hello…?"

"You _need_ to keep it down," the young male voice seemed to growl at him.

Frowning slightly, he turned around and wobbled back to where he was aligned with the fake basket of fruit. "I'm not one of them," the redhead said gently into the machine.

"I know you're not," the other replied shortly.

"…You okay?"

"Fine…"

"Um…who is this, anyways?" the man asked, bending down some to peek under the dining table then standing back up.

There was what seemed like a long pause before the male on the other end replied. "'M Roxas and this's my place," the one named Roxas said bluntly. "Who're you?"

"Hey, Roxas… Name's Axel…"

"…You're not my brother."

Axel shook his head even though Roxas couldn't see him. It saddened him a small bit when he heard the other's statement. It felt like he had kicked the kid when he was down. "No," he said. "I'm not…" He made a half turn to see the sliding glass door again before looking forward and limping to the living room, standing next to the couch. "How old are you?"

"Eighteen."

"…and you're the only one here?"

"I have no idea where anyone is," Roxas stated. "How old are you?"

The redhead licked his lips. "Um, I'm twenty four…"

"Alright…"

"Er, if you don't mind my asking," Axel began as he turned around and went back to the kitchen, "where're your parents?"

"Don't have any anymore," he said. "They were dead before all this crap happened… All the family I have now are my half-brothers."

"Where are your brothers then?"

"I dunno where Neku is," Roxas said in a sigh. "Cloud went to the airport and left me here with Neku… Hollow Bastion, I think? Y'know, where the gummi ships are…"

As the young man on the walkie-talkie spoke, the redhead had made his way from the entry of the kitchen to the sink. He turned his head different angles, attempting to see if he could possibly find the other male he was talking to. "Hey, are you safe?"

"Sure am."

"Where are you?"

"Outside in the tree house… _They_ can't get me from here."

Axel's eyes traveled up to look at the playhouse and smiled a small half smile. "That's clever…"

"Look," Roxas instructed as he opened the door to the tree house, effectively catching the green eyed man's attention. "Can ya see me? I can see you in the kitchen."

The criminal smiled and gave the young man in the playhouse a wave. He jumped slightly when Roxas let out a yelp and hid back into his hiding spot. He was about to question him until he was surprised by a dead being when he turned to his right some.

As the thing came at him, the redhead jerked around and put his hands on its shoulders to keep it away. Grunts came out of his throat while he fought against it. His jaw was clench and his short, red eyebrows were fixed into a tight frown. Where had this thing come from? How had he missed it?

With a sudden surge of strength, Axel pushed the dead being into the black stove and turned on his heel immediately to run off. He just barely got started on his escape when his feet hit a pool of blood, making him slip. The man hit the side of his head on the edge of the counter before he met the cold, unforgiving tile.

He groaned as he opened his green eyes. His vision was blurry, making him panic and rub his eyes. "God damn it," he growled and shook his head violently, propping himself up with his left arm. Axel could hear the thing coming closer, and his sight wasn't coming back to him fast enough, so he decided to do the best he could. He waited until he was able to make out what he thought was the dead being's head before he kicked.

The man scrambled to his feet after he felt his foot make contact, his vision clearing and allowing him to see the thing fly back to the stove. As fast as he could, he limped around the corner to the dining table before his heart felt like it had stopped. The dead being's hand had grabbed his ankle and effectively making him fall to the ground again with his chest making impact. "Uuhn…!" he gasped, the air being crushed out of his lungs, while he turned around to be able to face the dead and his eyes widened as the thing was crawling up his body since it had already caught up to him.

With clear vision, Axel brought up his left arm and targeted a punch in its forehead before watching it go back and to the right as he backed away from the thing. Much to his dismay, the being recovered quickly and continued its chase after him. He had no idea what he was going to do. He wished someone else was with him and that they could help him.

Unknown to the redhead, a small, blonde male had climbed down a tree and was running across the yard as fast as he could.

The young man climbed the porch railing when he got to the house (cutting the middleman in a way) and with a swift jerk on the handle, the sliding door flew open. He kneeled down while the door opened he held a rusty looking hammer at Axel's side far enough in front of him to see. "Here," he ordered in a hasty manner.

Axel punched the thing with what he now noticed was orange hair and it also wore headphones around its neck. Where had he seen this before? He was sure this being was somewhat familiar to him…

It suddenly dawned on him when his mind flashed and remembered the picture he looked at earlier. The silver haired man, who he assumed was Sephiroth… The tall blonde, Cloud, who was trying to make him smile… The short blonde, Roxas, who was getting a noogie… Then the fourth male who was giving Roxas the noogie…

This must be Neku, the criminal thought sadly.

Roxas' voice took the man out of his trance; disturbing his thoughts. "Hurry," he insisted and nudged the other with the hammer.

He took the tool from the other young man and somewhat played with it in his hand. The redhead watched as it moved around in his hand before he held onto it with a tight grip. He then let out a choked startled sound when he was dragged to the other being after his ankle was grabbed unexpectedly.

"I-I'm sorry, Neku," he stuttered in a small whisper before bringing the arm with the hammer in its hand back.


	3. Werkin' On Me Peaple Skilz

The hammer came down on its head with tremendous force. It made the thing follow momentum and go to the left to make it land on its back before the man got on top of it. He quickly got to his knees and straddled the dead being's torso, bringing the tool to hit it in the face again. He repeated this action three more times.

On the last blow to its face, the thing had ceased its sounds and the head decided to hang onto the weapon. This made Axel frown and yank on the hammer a couple times. While the tool was being taken out of the thing's face, there was a suction sound and the redhead could hear the small blonde let out his noise of disgust.

When it was free, the man dropped the hammer on the floor before letting out a sigh and standing up. He watched as the other young man backed away from the pool of blood that was inching towards his feet then up at his face. He also took note of the frown that was on the other's face. "Hey ya, Roxas," he said carefully.

Looking up at the green eyed man, the blonde seemed uncertain about what had just happened. "…Did you kill it?" he asked in a hesitant tone.

"I…I think something else did," the criminal answered. "Y'know, before I got here…"

Dark blue eyes appeared to widen as Roxas bit his lower lip. "He must've been the one screaming I heard a few days ago…"

Axel allowed his own frown to develop on his face. "You've been all by yourself through this?" he questioned.

"Yes," the young man said sadly and looked down at their feet. "I would really like for Cloud and Sephiroth to come home now…"

The older man licked his lips. "I…think that'll be a while, y'know…?"

Roxas' shoulders seemed to drop when the words hit his ears. "Right… I just…don't wanna be alone anymore…"

"Hey," the redhead began gently, resting his hand on the teen's shoulder, "I'll stay with ya until we find your brother and…"

"…his boyfriend…?"

"Right and I'll be there for ya," Axel assured him. "You're not gonna be alone anymore."

After he gave the older male a nod, the teen looked up at the redhead. He didn't know who this person was, but he didn't care. He seemed to be genuinely concerned about his wellbeing and all that jazz… Perhaps he was having some good luck at the time being. "Now what're we gonna do?" he asked.

Green eyes locked with dark blue ones as Axel thought of what to do. They could choose to either wait until dusk or they could go find help right now. Which was the better plan though?

If they were to wait for sunset, they wouldn't be seen as easily. They could get by anybody or anything they wanted! Of course, they then would have to pass the time for nighttime to come around as well as find shelter. It wasn't like he knew what those things could do at night either, and that was something he probably didn't want to find out just yet…

On the other hand, if the both of them were to leave the house now, they might find someone to help them. Lady Luck would need to hang over them for that scenario to happen, and, if it were not to happen that way, something would happen to at least one of them. Was that risk really worth it?

I feel like my pick is a bad choice, he thought after he had decided on which plan they were going to go through.

"Axel…?"

"We gotta get outta here _before_ nightfall," he instructed. "We need to find some help."

Roxas nodded his head in agreement. "Good idea," he praised. "It's not all that safe at night…"

Taking a few steps forward as the blonde turned around, the criminal squeezed his shoulder gently while they stood in the sliding glass door frame. "Stay close by," he whispered.

"Okay…"

Following the smaller man out of the house, the redhead made his way to the railing of the deck. He looked around while the teen had turned around and shut the sliding door behind them. When he turned his head to look at him, the other male gave him a look that he wasn't sure of what it meant and he watched as the other started to walk ahead of him before starting on the way himself.

Using the railing as support, Axel limped as fast as he was able to the stairs and down them. He wasted no time when he touched the cement, hobbling along behind Roxas who was heading to an iron gate. Both of them then crouched down, even though there was nothing to shield them, when they saw two people with their backs to them, attempting to push cars around.

A young woman with long, blonde hair that was pulled back into a braid grunted and groaned along with her silver haired male companion as they pushed against a red Volvo. With a huff, the female quit her pushing and pulled on her black and white, plaid button up shirt before she placed her hands on her hips while the man crossed his arms. For the life of them, they couldn't seem to get the machine moving. "Jeez…" she trailed off with a pout.

"Can't head home to Grandpa Xehanort at this rate," the muscled male said with a shake of his head.

Sighing, the lady said, "This completely stinks!"

"He's gonna be pissed," the man muttered. "It's hot dish night tonight…"

Roxas and Axel stayed in their positions near the fence and watched the other two people begin pushing the Volvo again until they were sure they were safe. When the young man didn't move, the redhead stepped forward and was about to open the gate on his own when something in his head told him to look back at the blonde. After he did so, he noticed the other staring down at their feet before he kneeled down. "What's up…?" he asked quietly.

"I-I dunno if I should go," Roxas murmured.

Axel raised a short, red eyebrow. "What're you saying?"

With a sigh, the blonde looked at the older man and into his green eyes. "I _really_ don't wanna stay another night in the tree house, but 'm not sure if I should go," he explained. "What if Cloud and Sephiroth come back?"

The redhead smiled a small, gentle smile. "I won't let ya be alone again," he said. "'M sure we'll find the both of them."

Keeping silent, the teen nodded and watched the other male open the gate. "Yo…!" he heard the other exclaim then rubbed his forehead while the two people before them flipped when they turned to face them.

"Holy shit…!" the silver haired male exclaimed.

"Please, don't eat us!" the blonde female begged.

With a chuckle, Axel said with his hands up in defense, "We ain't gonna get chya."

Both the man and the woman let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh thank goodness!" the girl exclaimed. "Thought the both of you were gonna give us the bite!"

"Either of you know what the fuck's goin' on here at all?" the criminal asked while scratching the back of his head.

Shaking her head, the only female crossed her arms. "No clue," she replied. "You've seen it as well then?" She looked back at a white, soccer mom van with another dead being next to it before turning back to the redhead.

He stared at the thing for a short moment then looked back at the blonde woman. "You can say that…"

"Anyways, I'm Naminé." She smiled a small smile.

"This's Roxas," he said while indicating to the blonde, young man. "I'm Axel."

"Ansem…" the silver haired one answered shortly.

Naminé looked around a little bit from the spot she was standing in before biting her lip and turning her attention back to the redhead and other blonde. If they didn't get moving, something was gonna happen which she wasn't exactly too thrilled about that little tidbit. "Shouldn't be out like this," she stated. "Help us with moving some cars around and we'll take you and your son outta here to my daddy's farm. I'm sure it's _a lot_ better there."

"I'm not his pop," the redhead said in a tone that sounded as if he were offended. "I'm…"

Shit, Axel thought, should I tell them the truth or otherwise?

Three thoughts ran through his mind: he was a neighbor, just some guy, or he was his acquaintance.

If he was to say he was a neighbor, then one of them could probably question him about the neighborhood and figure out his lie.

If he was to say he was an acquaintance, they would buy the lie until something that could come up and bring his fib to the light.

If he was to say he was just some guy… Who knows what the two of them would do or think.

They'll probably think Imma pedo or something if I tell them I'm just some guy, he thought sourly.

"Hello…?" the blonde woman called. "Earth to Axel…! Where'd ya go?"

"I'm just some guy," Axel said, pushing away his negative thoughts.

Naminé gave him a surprised expression. "A random dude…?" she asked. She watched the redhead nod before looking at Roxas. "He's been all by himself through this? Wow…" She shook her head and uncrossed her arms. "Well, let's get a move on," she said. "It's a bad idea to stay in the same place for too long."

Axel turned his head to see the young man that had apparently moved to stand behind him. "You okay with this…?"

Roxas tilted his head up and eyed the address on his house before he responded. "I…guess…"

"Eep, there's more of the monsters!" the woman squeaked.

"We've gotta go now," Ansem growled and crouched down next to a dark blue Corolla, acting as if he were keeping watch.

The woman positioned herself against the red Volvo, getting ready to push. "Axel," she called quietly. "Come gimme a hand with this stupid thing!"

Doing as he was instructed, the redhead limped over to the woman and pressed his hands against the machine. Both he and Naminé pushed with all of their strength and got it to move halfway out of a black truck's way. They pushed again, but couldn't get it to move again and the panic immediately was evident in the female's dark blue eyes. Roxas noticed this and rushed over himself and pushed as well along with Axel and Naminé.

Much to everyone's relief, the three of them were able to move the car the rest of the way and, in a quick manner, the four of them got around the black truck before opening the doors.

Naminé hopped in on the driver's side and started the car while Roxas climbed in to sit in the middle seat with Axel in tow. She waited until Ansem got into the bed of the truck before she slammed her foot on the gas pedal and sped off. "For a random guy, you seem to have saved a whole buncha lives tonight," she pointed out as she drove over a curb to cut a corner.

With a saddened look, the blonde young man watched his home become farther away each second as they traveled after he had turned around in his seat. He could only hope that Cloud and Sephiroth hadn't decided to come back yet and were still in Hollow Bastion.

"Hey, watch it, Nam!" Ansem yelled. "I'm still living, ya know!"

"Sorry, just trying to get there faster!" she announced. "Hold on and don't bop out!"

I could _so_ say something about women drivers right now, the redhead thought.

"Don't even _think_ about saying anything about female drivers, Axel," Naminé growled.

He gaped at her. "I didn't even say a damn word!"

The woman smirked. "I gotta sixth sense that works like that," she told him.

Axel looked away from the blonde female and out the window that was to his right. "Knew women were loco," he muttered.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, nothing… I said nothing."

"That's what I thought."


	4. The Old Man's Farmland

No one spoke, or had even attempted to start up another conversation during the ride. It was like silence was sacred and, if anyone were to speak, it was a sin. Still, it was boring, to say in the least.

Axel looked down at the teen on his left. He acted as if he were about to pass out any second from the way he was forcing his dark blue eyes to stay open. When the boy lost to sleep, his head immediately came into contact with the redhead's shoulder, but he didn't mind. He just went back to sightseeing from the window at his right even though it was basically pitch black outside.

There was a sudden bump that startled everyone. Well, everyone but Naminé. "Sorry, pothole!" she apologized in a giggle.

"God damn it, Nam," the man in the bed of the truck sighed. "_Please_ be more careful. I don't wanna hear from your dad that you're damaged produce…"

"You wouldn't be to blame, though!" she retorted.

The silver haired male let out a short laugh. "It's your dad," he replied. "He'd find a way."

Roxas allowed his own sigh to pass his lips and laid his head back against the criminal's arm. "So close to falling asleep, too," he grumped. He blushed lightly when he felt the green eyed man's hand ruffle his oddly spiked hair and heard him laugh gently.

The rest of the ride to the farm was silent after the incident, but it was comfortable.

I dunno how we're gonna get there, Axel thought, but the both of us are gonna head to Twilight Town…

))((

"Hold on back there a little longer, Ansem!" Naminé called to the silver haired man. "There's a bumpy road ahead, but we're almost there!"

The blonde male let out a small yelp when the car got on the rugged road while a long arm wrapped around him. Both he and the older man turned their attention to the woman as she hollered happily and drove. Was she not completely right in the head?

"We're here!" the girl said with a smile, parking the black truck she was driving in front of a yellow colored farm house with white trim and next to a white truck. "This's my daddy's farm!"

Roxas turned toward the redhead and moved in a way that was telling the other to move. "Out," he muttered in a desperate tone. "Please, I don't wanna be in this truck any longer with her…"

"I don't blame you," the criminal said and got out before helping the teenager.

"Naminé, I hate to do this to ya, but I gotta go," Ansem announced as he hopped out of the truck bed. "Grandpa Xehanort's probably royally pissed at me as it."

She smiled at the tall man. "That's okay," she said and gave him a hug. "Go do what ya have to! I'll see you tomorrow, 'kay?"

He nodded and returned the embrace then turned his head to look at their company. "Nice meeting you two," he said before turning away and walking through the corn field to head home.

A creak flowed through the air as the door to the yellow opened, revealing an aged man with short, blonde hair and goatee with dark blue eyes. He wore a dark red, cotton button up shirt and had the sleeves on it rolled up. "Do I hear you out here, Naminé?" he asked. The man appeared to be angered, but that could have been just because some of the wrinkles on his face.

"Daddy…!" she exclaimed with a smile and ran to him. The woman gave the elder man a tight hug and buried her face into his chest, relaxing into his hold when he returned the hug. "I was scared things had gone haywire here too…"

"Been normal out here for the last few days," he informed. "Ol' Lexaeus down the road thinks his Chocobo's gone lame, but that's not new."

Naminé moved her head to look up at her father. "Wouldn't've made it here without Ansem…"

"Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm glad you took him with you, then," he said in an almost reluctant manner. He put an arm around his daughter's shoulders when they turned and let each other go. "Oh," he said with surprise. "You picked up some guests along the way."

"Your daughter's a lifesaver," Axel said with the teenager nodding in agreement.

The older man laughed. "Pleased that she could be useful for someone…"

"H-Hey…!"

"So, it's just you and your brother…?"

With a giggle, the blonde female shook her head. "No, not his brother," she interjected. "Not his son either… He's…some guy who found him."

Frowning a little bit, the father kneeled down to be at Roxas' height. "Son, do you _know_ this man?"

"…Yes…"

"Alright…" He then got back to his feet with a small sigh, showing in his body language that he was backing down before taking note of the redhead's injury. "Hurt yourself pretty bad it looks like," he stated.

The redhead nodded. "Not doin' to well either."

He smiled. "Come up here on the porch and I'll take a look at it," he offered. "You, on the other hand…" The blonde father looked down at his blonde daughter. "Naminé, go inside and check on your sister, Kairi."

"On it…!" she said with a smile then gave the man a quick peck on his cheek before heading inside the home.

With another nod, Axel walked over to and up the steps of the deck as the father went into the house. He made a small turn to the right and sat on a bench that was there, seeing Roxas standing on the steps to be out of the way while the elder blonde came back out with a first aid kit. His green eyes observed the other man kneel down for the second time that night and examine his leg.

"Let's see here…" he trailed off while putting the kit next to him before opening it to grab a bottle and putting some of its contents on the open wound. "Good lord…it's swollen to hell…"

"Hurts like hell," the criminal hissed.

"Doesn't surprise me," he said quietly. There was a moment of silence before the elder spoke again. "What did you say your name was…?"

I didn't, the redhead thought, and it shouldn't matter…

"Axel…"

With a smile, the older man said, "Good to meet you. You can call me DiZ."

"Right back at you…"

DiZ began to wrap the criminal's leg with the gauze he got from the kit. "How'd you do this?"

The other man licked his lips. "I, um…was in a car accident…"

"…Where were you heading before?"

Axel frowned. "I was getting out of Traverse Town."

"Oh…?" The elder spoke with suspicion in his voice and looked up at the redhead, raising an eyebrow at him. "The news says to stay there."

"You'd be stupid if you listen to them," he scoffed. "We hit something while leavin'… I think it might've been one of those…things."

A blonde eyebrow rose even higher on the farmer's face. "You were with someone? Was it the boy?"

"I was with a police officer," the redhead explained. "Givin' me a ride…"

"Awfully nice of him…"

"'M a nice guy…"

DiZ cleared his throat and turned his attention back to the criminal's leg. "Well…the house is up to the brim with my kin, but you're welcome to stay in the barn over there," he said. "Gotta family of three in there already, but there's more than enough room for you and your brother, I'm sure." The farmer turned halfway to be able to see the teenager. "I didn't get your name…"

"I-It's Ro-Roxas," Roxas stuttered.

"Can't fathom what you've seen, Roxas…"

"He's gonna be with me until we find his brother," Axel enlightened as the other man turned back to tend to his wound.

Naminé suddenly emerged from inside the house before she leaned against the door frame and crossed her arms. "Daddy," she began, "I think we should make the fence around here a bit stronger to keep out them monsters first thing in the mornin'…"

The farmer shook his head at the idea. "I don't believe that's essential…"

She frowned at her father. "Okay, I dunno what you've heard or seen on the Tele, or even what the radio told you, but there's some serious…crap hitting the fan. Those beasts are _destructive_… I don't think people get how bad things are yet…"

"Your girl's right," Axel clarified. "You're gonna want to make sure this place is able to put up a fight."

DiZ scoffed. "Stuff like that doesn't happen around here, Naminé, and you _know_ that."

The woman couldn't help but gape at her father. "Daddy, 'm serious!" she exclaimed. "Axel, tell him about the stuff you've seen already!"

He moved his bright green eyes away from the father and daughter. "I saw a cop come back from the dead, man…"

"…Do what you believe ya should," he said in a sigh. "We got enough things to do around here already as it is."

"Axel and the parents of the other boy in the barn can help out in the morning," Naminé stated. "We just _really_ need to get the fence fixed up, Daddy."

"Just said that it was alright, dear," he pointed out and tied the gauze while his daughter walked back into their home, seeming exasperated. "There ya go, all done. It should start feeling better tomorrow."

The redhead nodded. "Thank you…"

While standing, the farmer said, "Now, if your leg gets hot or if it becomes even more swollen, then ya got an infection."

He bit his lip. "What'd we do then?"

"Gonna have to shoot you, I guess."

You're fucking joking, Axel thought while staring at the man with wide eyes like he was insane along with Roxas. Both of them relaxed a little bit when they heard him give a light laugh.

"We'll clean it then redress it in the morning," he said.

No funny, old man, the criminal thought.

"That's my choice, thanks."

"Everything you need is already in the barn, and be warned: we'll be getting you bright 'n early tomorrow," he told him. "Where do you think you're going tomorrow?"

"I was thinking I'd go back to Twilight Town," he responded. He watched the farmer turn away just then and go inside of the yellow abode. "…Okay then."

))((

Axel took a deep breath and let it out slowly, closing his eyes after he had settled down on some hay he had covered up by a blanket he and his blonde companion had found near the barn doors. He was putting his hands behind his head when he heard and felt Roxas moving around before he cracked open an eye. He let out a quiet laugh at the repulsed expression upon his face.

"Smells like…"

"Shit…?"

"Exactly what I was gonna say…" After a short moment of silence, the blonde let out a sigh. "I miss Cloud…"

The redhead gave his companion a small, sad smile. "I bet…"

Roxas frowned. "How far away is Hollow Bastion, exactly?"

"I'm not sure of that myself… Sorry, Rox…"

Shaking his head, the blonde assured him, "No, that's alright… I didn't fully expect an actual answer…" He closed his eyes and snuggled into the blanket and hay below him, waiting for sleep to overcome him once more that night.

Turning his head to look away, the criminal stared at the wall to his left. He then closed his bright green eyes after a while as sleep began to take over. Hopefully things would be better in the morning…

))((

_A deep male voice let out a chuckle. "I love you, babe…" He then laughed before letting out a scream when a gun fired._

"Holy…!" Axel jerked himself to sit up as his hand flew to his chest and grip his shirt. He looked around with wide eyes while he panted and his heart raced.

"Axel…?" the blonde questioned in a sleepy voice before he yawned. "You okay…?"

Letting go of his shirt, the redhead let out a shaky sigh and scratched the back of his head. "F-Fine," he said quietly. "Go back to sleep…"

He didn't have to tell the teenager twice. When he was finished speaking, a light snore came from Roxas. He shook his head at him before laying back down himself and closing his eyes. This was _not_ a night, nor the time, to be up at odd hours of the night…

))((

"Time to be up," a man with brown tresses and dark blue irises said, his baritone voice disturbing the criminal's sleep.

Said man yawned and stretched his long limbs before sitting up. He scratched his head then turned his attention to his left to observe the blonde after he heard him moving around and releasing his own yawn. "You alright?" he asked with amusement in his voice as the other itched random places on his body and looked around.

"Yeah…just scratchy…"

The brunette gave Roxas a smile. "Considering you slept in a barn, young man, be happy you don't have spiders in your hair."

"Wh-What…?!" he gasped, shaking and hitting his head some in an attempt to remove any arachnids.

He chuckled. "Bet your uncle got 'em though, right?"

"Not his uncle…or his cousin, or his brother, or his father," the redhead informed then stood up. "I'm Axel…"

"Terra…"

"Dad…!" another brunette male with dark blue eyes exclaimed when he leaned into the barn from its door. He waited a short moment before Terra had turned to give his son his attention. "We're building a fence today! Tractor 'n all…!"

Roxas and Axel watched the over energetic teenager dash off with a bounce in his step with raised eyebrows. What was he on, and, whatever it was, could they have some? No one was _ever that_ robust. Not naturally, anyways.

"Okay, okay," Terra said with a laugh as he turned to look at the other two men. "Pro'lly should get to it, 'cause if we don't we won't hear the end of it." He moved forward to the door before he spoke again once he heard the other two following him. "That's my son, by the way," he stated while they headed to the house. "Name's Sora…"

"Why name him sky?"

"Since he was born, he's been as open as the sky."

Fuck, the redhead thought, I think I got a cavity…

"Although," the brunette began, "it could be that he's just dumber than a sack of Keyblades…"

"Daaad…!" Sora called, not having heard his father.

Terra let out a light chuckle. "He does make up with enthusiasm, though," he added before the three of them were in front of Sora and a blonde man that oddly enough looked exactly like Roxas. "Oh, is it true that you were heading to Twilight Town?"

With a nod, the criminal gave the brunette father a small smile. "Family's from there," he stated.

He let out a hum. "Well, Twilight Town's on the way… I, honestly, wouldn't mind a person who can bash some skulls in needed, ya know?"

Axel gave him a shrug. "Sure, it's appreciated very much."

"Not a problem," he said then turned around to his family. "Ventus, Sora, this's Axel and… Er, I'm sorry, but what's the kid's name?"

"Roxas…"

"…and Roxas..."

The blonde man smiled and looked at his younger copy. "That's an interesting name."

Hiding behind the redhead a little bit, the teenager bit his lower lip. "U-Um…thank you," he replied while the blonde woman came up to the small group.

"Time to get to work," she informed. "We've _all_ seen their capabilities, so the faster this fence gets more secure, the better."

Sora gave the female a grin. "Can I help?"

Giggling, Naminé hid her smile behind her pale hand. "Sure thing!" she said. "You can be the foreman and nag me whenever I take a water break while sitting on the tractor. Think you can be a good foreman?"

"I can be on the tractor?" he questioned, watching the young woman nod. "Cool…!"

"Sor and I 'ill get to it then!" With that, she headed off to the back of her home and having Sora tag along behind her like a lost puppy.

The blonde mother sat down on a bale of hay as he smiled. "I can watch Roxas for you, if you like," he offered while Terra walked over to his white truck. "We can chitchat."

"I'm eighteen, thank you," Roxas mumbled into the criminal's back. He walked over anyways, noticing he hadn't been heard, and sat down. He was actually kind of relieved he hadn't been since it was rather rude.

Axel looked up at the empty, bright blue sky and watched the clouds mosey long across it. He stood there with his arms crossed as he observed. He wondered why everything had started. He also pondered on how it could have happened.

It'll probably be done in a couple weeks, he thought, give or take some days.

He then looked over at the man working on the white truck. The man seemed like an okay guy, but no one can ever be sure unless they know said being for a long enough while.

By that time he had given the other his attention, Terra had pulled his shoulder length hair back into a loose ponytail and had the hood of the vehicle popped open as he worked on it. He wiped his hand on oil stained rag he had stuffed in his dark wash jeans pocket before using his shoulder, covered by a skin tight, black, short sleeve shirt, to itch his ear. "It's a piece of shit, but it does alright, I suppose," the brunette stated when he heard the redhead walk up.

"Did you need some assistance?"

He shook his head. "Nah, I got it," he said. "Do _you_ need some help?

The redhead raised an eyebrow at the other male. "What're you talking about?"

Sighing, the brunette said, "Making sure that the kid you've taken under your wing's gonna be okay." He turned his head to look at the criminal. "Do you even know what you've gotten yourself into?"

"I think I'll be alright," Axel stated before deciding to change the subject. "Um, so, how's _your_ kid?"

"Sora's okay, I think," Terra responded. "Ven has family in Olympus… We were coming back up from visiting them." He sighed and ran a clean hand through his hair. "We were at a gas station and I saw a man attempting to snatch 'im," the male explained. "I thought he was getting kidnapped, and I was on the guy in a second… I'm just happy I was there…" The brunette shook his head. "We saw a lot of corpses on our way here, but we're a strong family, Axel. Nothing's gonna overwhelm us…"

"Your plan, then, is too…?"

The brunette cursed under his breath when his grip slipped, making a loud tink sound. "Uh, get back to Destiny Islands and allow this…whatever it is, get fixed. ShinRa will give out shots then SOLDIER will do its thing," he responded. "Of course, if things _were_ to not end up that way…I guess we could get on my gummi ship…"

Axel stared at the other man with surprise filling all of his facial features. "You…have a gummi ship?"

Terra nodded. "I work on the water, so it's kinda a necessity…and now that I think about it, Ven probably won't be all that excited about the boat, but y'know."

"I see… Well, good luck with the truck."

"Thanks, Axel," the other man said before going back to work on the vehicle while the redhead turned his back to him and walked away.

The criminal observed the two blondes sitting on hay bales in front of the yellow house. Ventus appeared to be having a nice time. Roxas on the other hand…well, the man couldn't be sure, but he was leaning toward more that the kid just wanted to be alone. "Yo," he greeted when he walked up to them and crossed his arms before he smiled a small smile. "Having a nice time with Ventus, Roxas?"

He silently nodded.

"Heh, you guys _really_ are relaxed, aren't you?"

Ventus let out a light laugh. "We're doing just fine," he stated. "Roxas was just explaining to me the joys of high school."

He looked at the other blonde. "Oh and how's that…?" the redhead asked.

Rolling his eyes, Roxas replied, "Waaay to easy."

"Well…yeah!" Axel scoffed then watched the smaller blonde for a short moment. "So…you're okay?"

"Anyways…it's like we haven't been seeing people consuming one another for the last three days," Ventus said with a saddened tone and had the expression to go with it. "It's…nice here, isn't it…?"

Axel nodded. "So, um…whaddya do when the dead ain't walking?"

The bigger blonde of the two let out another laugh. "I'm a vet from Destiny Islands," he explained. "Kinda like DiZ, but more of smaller animals, like cats and dogs. What about you?"

"Used to work at the University of Twilight Town…"

"We need to have confidence that things will go back to normal and we can go back to our jobs ASAP. I mean, it can't stay like this!" Ventus bit his lower lip.

The redhead shook his head. "No, I _used_ to," he corrected. "I was released a little while ago…"

"My apologies," the mother sincerely said. "I've heard, though, that after a disaster people tend to go back to college." He shook his head in amusement. "Guess humans don't like to die stupid."

"Speaking of disasters…how did you manage the city?"

Ventus licked his lips with a small frown adorned on his face. "Terra just drove," he said. "So many people needed help that we passed and over some…and just…"

Axel decided he would take pity on the disturbed man. "It's alright," the redhead stated in a comforting tone. "You don't have to say any more than you can…"

"I'd like to go home tomorrow, but, even if we did, both Terra and I can't erase the things we…Sora…have seen…" The parent sighed. "Don't you desire for the chance to go back in time before all of this happened? You know, to set things right?"

"It was bad before," the criminal argued. "Sure it was a different bad, but still!

The blonde raised an eyebrow at the redhead while the teenager had a look of curiosity. "People are _eating_ each other, Axel."

Axel scoffed. "Oh, and they weren't before?" he asked in an almost sarcastic manner. "The banks, politics, the…the bullshit…! Now, all of that is _gone_." He uncrossed his arms before bringing a hand up to scratch the back of his head. "Chaos comes in various forms, you know," he said then watched as Ventus looked away as if he disagreed with him. "…I'll be back later."

"Okay, Axel…"

He turned to his right, towards the brown barn, and made his way to the back of the two-story, yellow home. The redhead smiled some at the sight before him: Sora bouncing up and down happily on the tractor seat, pretending to drive it, while Naminé hammered away on the fence.

Still working on that fence, I see, the criminal thought then waved to Sora. The brunette waved back to him with a huge grin on his face then went back to "driving."

"How ya doin', Sor…?"

"Good! I'm gonna be driving the tractor!" he exclaimed. "I'm also the foreman. Be careful, Naminé!"

Axel kneeled down next to the old, black, rusting tractor and examined its engine. "Know how to drive one?" he heard the blonde woman ask.

He shook his head. "Can't say that I do…"

"Too bad," she stated.

The redhead chuckled. "Well, how're they to drive?"

"Amazing…!" the brunette teenager exclaimed.

"Pain in the butt," she stated. "Big, heavy as heck, and slower than…" She trailed off when she went back to her fence building unintentionally, but the man let it slide. He shouldn't be distracting her anyways. He should've been helping her instead.

Walking up to the female's side, he watched her put the fence together for a little bit before he spoke a word. "Want some help?"

"Oh my gosh, that'd be great!" she said as she turned to look at the man and smiled. "Things would go along faster if those 2x4's were cut to length… Would you mind?"

"Not at all," he said and went over to some metal legs attached to two pieces of wood with a saw laying over it. He then bent down to grab a piece of wood before placing it down after he had picked up the saw.

Naminé sighed after a long silence. "Daddy doesn't understand how bad it is out there…"

"He doesn't," the redhead agreed.

"I saw someone in Traverse Town kill a _kid_ by shooting 'em in the face! Probably just a young teenager or even barely one…"

"You gotta do what chya gotta do to survive," Axel insisted.

The woman turned around so she could see the redhead and looked at him like he was asinine. "Like putting a gun to a child's head and pulling the trigger?! Screw that," she pronounced loudly then turned back to the fence. "They didn't even hesitate either… They just turned, put the barrel right between the kid's eyes, and…shot 'em…" She let out a shaky sigh. "You just don't see that! It's not like in the movies."

He shook his head. "They don't fall like you think they ought to."

She bit her lower lip and turned back. "…Have you had to do it yet?"

"Do what?"

"Kill one of them," she elaborated.

Which one should I tell her about, Axel wondered as he frowned, either one of the things I've had to do already would creep her out…unless I just lie and say I haven't killed one of them yet…

"I had to…bash in one of Roxas' half-brother's brains in with a hammer," he confessed. "I fell while he was chasing me and crawled more than halfway up my body when I took the hammer from Roxas and…yeah…"

Her dark blue eyes were wide and she moved to be looking at the fence again. "I couldn't do that," she admitted. "Y'know what…? I'm _happy_ we're getting this fence built. Daddy just wants to keep the family safe and thinks inviting more people is a bigger hazard than those…thingies." She shook her head. "Well, what about yours?" Naminé asked. "How's your family?"

"My parents and twin brother are in Macon," he said. "Er, at least…I believe they are…"

"Aw, I hope so too for your sake," the blonde woman sympathized. "Maybe it's not as bad there!"

The both of them fell silent and the criminal picked up and cut board after board while the woman hammered away. "That'll probably be enough for now, thank you," she suddenly said after he cut eight boards into two pieces. He nodded and placed the saw back down where it had been resting before then walked over to her side again and examined the fence she was working on. "Do you think this'll work?"

"In the shape it's in now? No, I don't," she declared. "I'm gonna come back and maintain it no matter how strong it gets. At least, that's my plan."

"You're tough."

Naminé laughed. "Well, when you and your twin are the youngest out of six children, and the other four are boys…you learn how to get some thick skin," she replied with a bright smile. "Anyways, if you're trying to get yourself into more work, it's not gonna come outta me." She picked up a handful of nails. "Daddy might be in the barn by now," she told him. "Maybe he'll have something for you to do."

"Alright," he said with a chuckle. "Oh, and, uh, Naminé…thanks again for the ride."

"Couldn't leave ya behind…" She smiled one more time before going back to work on the fence while Axel turned and walked off to the barn.

When he entered, he was greeted with DiZ looking up and glaring at him which brought forth a confused expression to appear on the redhead's face. What had he done? He didn't remember doing anything wrong. Perhaps it was because he just talking to his daughter?

"…How'd you get outta Traverse Town?" he asked, using the pitchfork he had in his hands to move hay around.

The criminal raised an eyebrow at the elder man. "I told you already that I gotta ride," he pointed out. "During it, we hit something and got into an accident. Afterwards, I walked until your girl found me."

DiZ let a noise reverberate in his throat that seemed to indicate he didn't fully believe him. "You're no worse for wear…"

"Er…this farm's a nice plot of land."

Scoffing, the old man said, "Heh, if you told me years ago I would be doing this for the rest of my life, I woulda told you that you were full of shit." He let out a small laugh. "Never was the plan to own a place like this, you know. It was in the family…and so was I," the man said before pausing in his work and looking up at the redhead. "Family's important and all that matters most of the time… You agree?"

Axel nodded. "I was raised to think like that."

"Well, where are they now?" DiZ asked. "Parents…? Siblings…? Wife, girlfriend…? Boyfriend…?"

"My parents are in Twilight town along with my twin."

The elder man went back to his work. "Hope they're safe, but now you have this kid to take care of," he pointed out. "Roxas, was it? You just randomly found him?"

Axel narrowed his eyes. "What're you getting at?"

He stopped again and watched the criminal for a short moment. "…Humph…" He then thrust his pitchfork into a pile of hay and crossed his arms, narrowing his own dark blue eyes. "Can I give you some advice?"

"What…?"

"I dunno who you are, or what you've done..." He trailed off then cleared his throat. "Hypothetically speaking, if this apocalypse, or whatever the hell this is, gets worse, or even things get worse before they get better, you're gonna hafta rely on _complete_ strangers," he stated. "If they begin to start questioning you, you're gonna be in some deep shit if you've decided to fib to them… Oh, and I'd check out that attitude of yours…"_friend_.""

Suddenly, the sound of the tractor starting up filled the air before a high pitched scream broke through it and both men ran out of the barn. What was going on? What had happened?

"_Go_…!" DiZ ordered. "I'll go get my gun!"


End file.
